By the time Sam picked Molly up at The Bulletin so they could head over to Judd’s house, her mind felt like an overstuffed suitcase. The party prep for the next night was all finished, so that was one thing off their plate. Molly couldn’t believe that they’d celebrate a birthday this Saturday and be at a funeral the next.
Leaning over in the cab of Sam’s truck, she pressed her lips to his. He hooked his hand behind her neck and pulled her in, taking the kiss deep enough to scramble her thoughts.
“Hi,” he said, pulling away and putting the truck in drive.
“Hi. I think that was the best part of my day,” she said, settling into her seat.
Sam chuckled and reached over the console to rest his hand on hers on her thigh. “It couldn’t have been a very good day then. I wasn’t even trying.”
Molly laughed and looked over at him. “I won’t add to your ego by telling you you’re often the best part of my day.”
His hand squeezed hers. “You good?”
“I am. How was your day?”
He drove away from town, heading into an older area where the houses didn’t look like heritage homes because they’d been renovated. As they wound up the incline of what the locals called the bluffs, the yards got bigger and the buildings got smaller.
“It was good. My mom had Brandon over for lunch today,” Sam said with only a slight tightness in his tone.
Brandon Saron was the sheriff of Britton Bay who was currently acting as mayor. When the last mayor had left town, he’d stepped up to take over the position temporarily. He was well suited to the role and well respected in town. Molly liked him, even though she’d been served with more than one warning about poking her curious nose into the wrong places while he’d been sheriff. Sam was struggling with the idea of his mom dating. That she was dating someone he respected made it more difficult to raise concerns.
“He’s been great about helping with the party. We should have them for dinner at our place some time. Just the four of us. Speaking of which, I think we should move the desk and get a small table so we actually have a place to eat dinner.”
The sun had already begun to set and this area of town wasn’t as well lit as Main Street. Many of the houses didn’t have exterior lights on, which made it seem even darker. More eerie.
“I like that idea. We can shop for our first piece of furniture together.”
Molly turned her hand over and linked her fingers with his. “I love that you actually sound excited about the idea. I’ve never met a man who liked to shop.”
“Easy. I didn’t say I liked to shop. But everything about building a life with you excites me, Molly.”
It took Molly a moment to recover her breath. “If I wasn’t already crazy about you, that would have tipped me over.”
He brought her fingers to his lips and kissed them before they settled into the ride. It didn’t take long. Britton Bay wasn’t huge. The population was somewhere around eighty thousand people, and it was only a twenty-minute ride from one end to the other.
The house they pulled up in front of was well cared for despite its obvious age. A small front porch gave it a welcoming feel even with the slightly slanted set of steps leading up to it.
Sam turned the truck off. “He’s probably feeling overwhelmed, so let’s tread lightly.”
Molly grabbed her bag and looked over at him when the interior light went on. “I’ll try to remember to keep my brass knuckles in the bag.” She reached out and rubbed Sam’s shoulder. “I know he matters to you.”
Sam nodded and they got out of the truck and walked up the cemented path. The porch creaked when they stepped onto it. Judd answered the door on the first knock, like he’d been waiting.
“Sam. And it’s Molly, right? Come on in.”
When Judd closed the door behind them, they stood in the small entryway a moment, shaking hands, Molly and Sam giving awkward condolences. What did one say to someone who’d been accused of murder and was possibly innocent?
“Come on in. Sorry, it’s a mess. Can I get you two something to drink? I’ve got some soda and juice.” Judd cleared a bunch of newspaper off of the couch, folded the pages together, and set them in a basket to the side. “Sit.”
“I’m fine, thank you,” Molly said. She sank farther into the cushions than she expected to and adjusted her position so she could take notes on her pad. Sam sank down beside her and she had to brace her legs so she didn’t roll into him.
He smiled at her. “I’m good, too, Judd. We don’t need anything. Molly just wants to ask you some questions to see if we can help.”
A wide wooden mantle over an aged stone fireplace held framed photographs, but Molly couldn’t see who was in them. Books littered the side tables, a reasonable-sized television was angled in the corner, and an arched doorway led to another room she suspected was a kitchen. The slight scent of something burnt lingered in the air.
Judd sat in the overstuffed armchair across from them, brushing his graying hair out of his eyes. “Don’t know what help you can give, to be honest. But I appreciate it all the same. Never thought I’d think these four walls would seem like a palace, but let me tell you, in comparison to a six-by-four-foot cell, they’re the Taj Mahal.”
Molly felt a pang of sorrow but reminded herself to be objective. This man mattered to Sam and Chris, and Chris was an excellent cop who thought there was more to the story. But they could have been wearing blinders that often came with affection.
“I’m sure it’s not pleasant. I just wanted to follow up on a couple things. If I ask anything that upsets you, I apologize in advance. My only intention is to try to find the real killer.”
Judd looked down at the carpet a moment and Molly sensed he was gathering himself. When he lifted his head, his eyes were watery. “Wouldn’t hurt nothing. I know you don’t know me but it’s the truth. I didn’t care for Magnolia. Maybe I did once upon a time but there was never nothing between us.”
“We know you didn’t hurt anyone, Judd,” Sam said.
We hope. “I heard Magnolia was on set every day at four even though rehearsal wasn’t until seven. Were you there at that time?”
Judd nodded, clasping his hands between his knees. “Yup. Every day. She was nothing if not particular about her schedule. But I didn’t spend any time with her. I kept my distance right from the start. Not that she remembered me, really. That day, I was meeting my cousin Tripp. He was applying for the temp job on the cleaning staff. I was waiting for him at the reception and heard something, so I went in and, well, you know what I found, Molly. I can’t get that out of my head.”
Judd shifted in his chair and Molly felt another pang of sadness for him. She’d had the image in her head more than a few times too. It wasn’t pleasant, and knowing that it had been intentional made it worse.
“I understand that completely. It’s awful,” Molly said.
Sam reached out and squeezed her hand. “What do you think you heard?”
Judd shrugged. “I reckon the house coming down.”
“Did Tripp show up?” Molly asked, making notes.
Judd nodded. “Yeah. The manager rescheduled though, on account of all the police swarming the place.”
“So, you didn’t have a relationship with Magnolia?”
Judd’s face scrunched up but he said nothing. Molly watched his hand clench and unclench. The front door opened and closed. All three of them looked toward the entryway and Molly saw a man not much taller than herself shuffle in. He was wearing jeans and a plaid work shirt. His gray hair was receding in a perfect m-shaped arch.
“Oh. Sorry, Jay. Didn’t know you had company.” The man set a steel lunchbox down and came all the way into the room. “Hey there. You’re Sam Alderich, right? Tripp Simmons. I sure loved that car show you put on. Great stuff. Other than the murder, obviously.”
“I am, and thanks.” Sam shook his hand.
Molly nearly laughed. Tripp cringed at his own words. “Sorry. No disrespect meant.”
“I’m Molly.” She shook his hand, noting the firm grip.
“How was work?” Judd asked his cousin.
“Lots of gossip. We can talk later. I’ll grab a shower and dinner and come back up.” Tripp started to back away.
“Actually, Molly here is somewhat of a sleuth and is looking for other suspects. Why don’t you stay?” Judd said.
Tripp ran his hand through his bushy hair. “You don’t say. How about that. Did you tell her about your locker?”
Molly and Sam both looked toward Judd expectantly.
“What about your locker?”
Judd sat straighter. “Those texts they found between me and Magnolia? I didn’t send them or respond to anything she sent me. Most of the time, I couldn’t even remember to grab my phone. But even if there was evidence, they can’t honestly believe anything was going on. I mean, really, look at me. I’m a janitor, living in the same house I grew up in. Even if I was pining for Magnolia, which I absolutely was not, why would a woman like that be texting with me?”
He had a point. Plus, Molly remembered, the Sweet children had both mentioned their mother’s dislike of texting.
“She wasn’t a better person than you just because she lived in a fancy house and had money, Judd,” Sam said, his voice rigid.
“Amen, brother,” Tripp said, taking a seat on the ottoman. “I got a temp job at the rec center just in time. With Judd being on leave, I’ve been covering his hours. His locker was broken into a while back. He never fixed it. Too busy fixing everything else. But that means someone else could have gotten to his phone, right?”
Molly jotted that down, then looked at Judd. “Most people carry their phones with them.”
Judd smiled, his teeth showing through his massive beard. “Most young people, dear. I go to work, do my job. I’m not there to chat on the phone or play solitaire, which is really all I use my phone for. Always leave it in my locker. Keep my wallet on me, but there’s not much in it, so it’s not bulky. Plus, I like to grab some snacks from the vending machine without having to run back to my locker. No reason to have my phone on me. Sometimes I don’t even remember to turn it on.”
“Were any other prints found on it?” Molly asked.
“They didn’t say so,” Judd replied.
“Ridiculous. My cousin has been part of this community his whole life. Detective Beatty knows he didn’t do this, but he still had to spend a night in a cell.”
“Now, Tripp. You calm down. Chris is just doing his job.” Judd settled further back into his seat, his tone soft.
Tripp leaned forward on the ottoman. “I’ve been listening to conversations around the stage, trying to find some proof that someone else did this—guess I’m sort of an amateur sleuth like you, Molly. A lot of people had a grudge against that woman. Haven’t heard one person say they were sorry to see her go. Seems like the new director isn’t much softer though. I heard she came out from Los Angeles thinking she’d get to shine, and Magnolia did nothing but shove her into the background. Seems like motive to me.”
“Tiffany’s a nice girl, Tripp. She’s hardly had an easy go of it, waiting hand and foot on Magnolia.”
Judd seemed to have a soft spot for everyone. He looked at Molly. “Told you I might not be able to help you or myself. I just can’t think of anyone who would do this.”
“What do you know about Beau Harrison and Debra Connors? Do those names sound familiar?”
Judd smiled but Molly was distracted by Tripp’s derisive snort. Judd glanced at his cousin but looked back at Molly. “This is a small town, dear. I grew up with Deb. She was a few years ahead of me. I know Beau from a few senior events I’ve attended.”
Molly made a quick note and smiled at Judd. “I saw there’s another senior golf tournament coming up at the course beside their facility.”
Judd laughed. “Probably. But that’s not my game. Or Beau’s, actually. Both of us joined a tournament a few years ago and we were so bad at it we hit the nineteenth hole about three hours early. We decided right then and there we’d never be stepping foot on the greens again. Better ways to use our time.”
Molly laughed, knowing that referred to the bar, but then remembered Beau’s alibi.
“Were you friends?” Molly asked.
Judd waved a hand. “Friendly, maybe. We didn’t really run in the same circles. Why you asking about them? Deb’s all bark.”
Tripp let out a frustrated huff. “She the one playing Auntie Em? I heard her yelling at Beau today on set. You ask me, she’s all bi—”
“Tripp,” Judd cut in. “Lady present.”
Tripp frowned. “Sorry. Just don’t like any of them. Any one of them had reason to kill Magnolia, being bossed around by her all day, but no, they’ve pinned it on my cousin.”
“I’m sure this is hard on both of you. Do you have any other family in the area?” Molly closed her notebook.
“Couple more cousins,” Judd said.
“Anyone see you at the time of death?”
Judd shook his head. “Nope. No one was at the front desk when I was waiting for Tripp. When I heard the thud, I went in. No one else was in the theater until you showed up.”
“I’ve got some leads I’m going to follow, Judd. I know that this needs to happen quickly. Sam cares a great deal for you and I want to help any way I can. If you can think of anything else that seems odd or out of place, let me know, okay? You can reach me at the newspaper.”
“You’re a nice girl, Molly. Sam’s a lucky man. Deservedly so.” Judd stood and shook both of their hands.
As they were moving toward the exit, Tripp walked next to Molly. “He didn’t do this. He wouldn’t hurt a fly. My money is on that Deb woman. Nasty to everyone she talks to. No better than Magnolia, you ask me.”
Molly stopped and looked at Tripp. “Did you know Magnolia?”
His eyes widened but he shook his head. “Nah. But you don’t have to know someone to hear all the stories. Doesn’t sound like I was missing out.”
Maybe not. She certainly didn’t have a whole lot of people in her corner. If any.
“You’ll dig into Deb? Maybe that director girl?” Tripp asked.
“I will. I’m glad he has you looking out for him,” Molly said.
“Family stands by you no matter what. What’s that saying? Blood is thicker than water. He’s my blood.”
Molly fought the slight cringe the words conjured and nodded her head. Not everyone felt that way. Certainly not Magnolia’s own children.